Milton Nascimento Clube Da Esquina (1972) {emi Odeon}

The list of prominent North American and British fans of Milton Nascimento continues to grow almost exponentially and as a result, his first album for Warner Bros, recorded in Rio, New York, Pittsburgh and L.A., has a longer guest list than ever before. On the jazz side, Wayne Shorter reunites with his Brazilian soulmate on two tracks, his beam-of-light soprano soaring brightly, and a quintet containing Pat Metheny, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Jack DeJohnette, and Robertinho Silva sails magnificently through two early Nascimento classics: "Vera Cruz" and "Novena" (his first song ever).

The artistic range and breadth of ANGELUS is such that it stands as something of a Milton Nascimento compendium, summing up many of the stylistic milestones and personal triumphs that have made his music so enduring. In fact, when he gathers the superstar rhythm team of Pat Metheny, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Jack DeJohnette and Robertinho Silva to perform "Novena" (as well as his famous "Vera Cruz") it is Nascimento's first recording of his very first song. But then ANGELUS is brimming with variety and talent. There's also a uniquely Milton rendition of the Beatles' "Hello Goodbye," a bouncy "Only A Dream In Rio" (with James Taylor) and the wordless mystery of "Qualquer Coisa A Haver Com O Pariso" (with Peter Gabriel).Other special guests on this record are Wayne Shorter and Jon Anderson. From the poetic grandeur of the rain forest to the dancing carnival of the big city, Nascimento's music on ANGELUS is a romantic celebration of life.

It's been far too long since the great Nascimento released an album of new material, but on the basis of this, he's completely on form, not losing his golden touch at all. Dedicated to his late stepmother, it finds Nascimento mining the themes of childhood and love that have always been the very heartbeat of his music. And to help him explore them, he's used some colleagues from the days of the classic Clube Da Esquina, people like Lô Borges and Eumir Deodato. While most of this album is made up of songs, letting Nascimento's brilliantly luminous voice shine, there's also an instrumental excursion, "Cantaloupe Island," that brings in American jazzers Herbie Hancock and Pat Metheny. It's pleasant, but hardly up to the high standards of the rest of this disc, such as the glowing saudade of "Tristesse," as powerful a song as any in Nascimento's excellent canon.

This is the CD reissue of an album recorded in 1976. At this point, Nascimento had an experience with fusion in the Som Imaginario, and with jazzers such as Herbie Hancock (who had recorded with him in the previous year's Milton) or Wayne Shorter (Native Dancer). In this album, Nascimento experiments economically with orchestra, trying to recover his roots, the culture of the Minas Gerais state, whose already strong civilization made possible an expressive Baroque and sacred music in the 17th century. Therefore, the atmosphere here is not as swinging, but it reaches deeper emotional dimensions.

Tom Jobim was the originator of the new Bossa Nova beat in Brazil in the late '50s and it was Joao Gilberto that first mastered the guitar technique to introduce it to the world in 1958. They both said that Milton Nascimento was the only singer that could reach the original pitch of the compositions and so it is entirely fitting that he has teamed up here with Tom's son Paulo and grandson Daniel for a recording session to celebrate both Tom Jobim and the anniversary of his invention of the Bossa Nova. Mixing songs by Tom Jobim, Milton Nascimento and Daniel Jobim, this is a true master class in the art of the Bossa and a new milestone in Brazilian music.

This is another of the must-have classic albums by Milton Nascimento. Released in 1975, the album opens with the wonderful "Minas" (Novelli), a tribute to all sacred music traditions in the Minas Gerais state, which was deeply influential in Nascimento's sensibility. The album launched songs that became strong emotional hits: "Fé Cega, Faca Amolada," "Beijo Partido," the nostalgic "Saudades Dos Aviões da Panair," "Ponta de Areia," and "Paula E Bebeto." There's a preferential orchestral/choir treatment over the band's performances which strengthens the evocative bonds of an ancient Minas.

An elaborately produced piece of vinyl, Journey to Dawn was, alas, the result of yet another campaign to prematurely place Nascimento into the U.S. market in a big way. The cosmopolitan tropicalismo movement continued to leave its mark on Nascimento, placing the bossa nova on the back burner and replacing it with an urgency often generated by four-square rock rhythms and electric guitars, percussive sounds from the Brazilian jungle, and some orchestrations from California.

"Txai" is described as a term of respect for those who are allies of the forest – and such is the focus of this concept album, the end result of a fact-finding voyage through part of the northern Brazilian watershed. Utilizing forces ranging from a simple dialogue between Milton Nascimento's baritone and percussion to a large orchestra and chorus (often arranged by Wagner Tiso), Nascimento shares his thoughts about the rivers and nature, ultimately warning us not to let the forces of capitalism destroy the Amazon rain forest (reinforced by a spoken passage written and narrated by actor River Phoenix). The songs are separated by wild-sounding interludes of folk music from the peoples of the region, and there is a fascinating vocal/percussion arrangement of Heitor Villa-Lobos' "Nozani Na."